Tag: Books

Random Thoughts

Entertainment, Religion

Clippers
I can’t believe some of the reactions I’m hearing regarding Chauncey Billups’ achilles tendon injury. It’s not the Clippers curse, although I have to admit that I’m a little confused as to how things turned around so drastically in one year, and it’s not good news. It really bothers me that some are rejoicing in the misfortune of Billups and the Clippers. Come on. These are real people. Let’s see some compassion.

Lana Del Rey
With her recent SNL flop of a performance, I was curious to listen to her new album. I don’t know how much of it she’s responsible for, but I really like it. It’s a dark, moody collection of songs manufactured for both indie and pop appeal. I think it works.

Politics
I hate politics. Are rich, career politicians really all there are to choose from? And, can’t we put aside differences and work together? I’m tired of people disagreeing with each other because their party says they are supposed to.

Kosher Jesus
Apparently, there’s a new book titled “Kosher Jesus.” I just read a little about the controversy it’s raising over at the LA Times. What amazes me is the reactions people are giving after having just read the title. Weren’t we taught to not judge books by their covers? Furthermore, have you ever read a book you 100% agree with? We need to move back to that place where we think for ourselves and draw our own conclusions. Reading books you don’t agree with is a great way to find, and challenge your own beliefs. If you’re afraid of being swayed, you probably have some work to do.

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Whispersync for the car?

Technology

I picked up Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer the other day and I’m really getting into it. In fact, I was reading it while at my in-law’s the other night and when it came time to get in the car I was a little sad that I had to put the book down. That’s when I had this great idea.

Kindle needs to take their Whispersync technology to the next level. They need to take it to the car.

Say you’re reading a book on your Kindle. When you get in the car you can’t continue reading, unless your car stereo was to do the reading for you. Your stereo should have a kindle app that picks up where you left off. It could use the Kindle Whispersync technology to know they last page you read and continue with your book.

Now, I realize that you would likely have to purchase an edition of the book that allows for both text and audio, and that would probably drive up the price. But wouldn’t it be cool? Your car could pull your books through the airwaves and deliver them to you over your car stereo. It’s like a book on tape for the digital generation.

Love & War

Life, Religion

So, a few months ago a friend passed along a link for a free book on marriage.

The book was called Love & War by John and Stasi Elderege. And, the only catch was that you had to agree to write a review of the book on your blog.

Since I like to read, and write, I signed up.

It wasn’t too long before the book arrived in the mail. Upon opening the package I was surprised that it was, in fact, an actual hard-cover copy of the book. It wasn’t a cheap paperback edition, or a photocopied pamphlet. It was an actual book.

A couple days later I started reading.

The book was a team effort written by a husband and wife who obviously have a few years of marriage and ministry under their belt.

It began pretty much like any marriage book, and it wasn’t until page 24 that something jumped out at me. Here’s what they wrote.

The bible begins and ends with marriage.

Simple.

And yet profound.

Maybe I’m the dumbest guy to ever get a degree in religion from a Christian, liberal arts college but I had never really thought about the Bible beginning and ending with the image of marriage.

Interesting stuff.

And, upon further reflection, and reading, I came to the realization that the entire Bible is filled with the imagery of marriage.

Quite interesting when you consider how messed up marriages are in today’s society, especially in Christian circles. You’d think that with all of the time the Bible devotes to the concept of marriage Christians would have it down.

Not so.

Throughout the rest of the book the couple goes on to discuss what that means for our marriages and our relationships with God. I won’t go in to any more details because this is already getting long but I will say if you’re married, and a Christian, you should pick a copy of this book up.

Prior to getting married I read a lot of books regarding the subject and I thought I was pretty well prepared. But, I have to say that I definitely didn’t really understand everything I read then. And, I’m sure I’ve forgotten a lot of it. Today, more than 5 years into my marriage, I had new insight and life experiences to bring in as I read Love & War. I’m sure you will to.

A Million Miles… Quotes and Thoughts

Religion

I had considered writing a few more posts about Donald Miller’s A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, but instead I think I’ll just share a couple more passages that jumped out at me as I was reading.

Here’s the truth about telling stories with your life. it’s going to sound like a great idea, and you are going to get excited about it, and then when it comes time to do the work, you’re not going to want to do it. It’s like that with writing books, and it’s like that with life. People love to have lived a great story, but few people like the work it takes to make it happen. But joy costs pain. (pp. 99-100)

This really hit home. It’s really easy to have grand plans, but it’s tough to actually follow through with them. I usually get lost somewhere between planning and implementing.

I was watching the movie Star Wars recently and wondered what made that movie so good. Of course, there are a thousand reasons. But I also noticed that if i paused the DVD on any frame, I could point toward any major character and say exactly what that person wanted. No character had a vague ambition. It made me wonder if the reasons our lives seem so muddled is because we keep walking into scenes in which we, along with the people around us, have no clear idea what we want. (p. 113)

This also hit home. It’s a question I’ve been pondering quite a bit lately. What do I want? What is my story? What is my ambition? I’ll probably explore this more in a future post because it’s something I’ve been struggling with for a while.

If these thoughts intrigue you at all, I encourage you to pick up a copy of the book. It’s a really good read. And, it’ll challenge you to take a look at your life and the story you’re living.